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Sugru air curable rubber

I subscribe to Make Magazine, a magazine dedicated to hackers, and saw this in an article. Sugru is a air curable rubber that is pliable like clay and dries like rubber. I'm thinking about ordering some to add rubber to my foregrip and to the plastic grips on my newly acquired hyperframe. I'll post a follow up after it arrives and I've had some time to play with it.

I was hoping someone here has heard of and/or used this before. Please let me know. I ordered an 8 pack from ebay yesterday and it should be here on Friday/Saturday. Although product cost more on ebay, it was cheaper with shipping. Makershed wanted $12.47 for shipping something that could fit in a $5 flat rate box.

The sugru arrived on my birthday, last Thursday. I bought a black 8 mini pack on ebay for $21 with shipping. Makershed wanted considerably less but it was plus $12.47 for shipping which made them higher. The packs are about the size of ketchup packets. The sugru itself is 5 grams or .17oz, about the width and height of my little finger.

I placed the sugru in the refrigerator until I was ready to use it. Sugru has a shelf life of about a year but is extended in the fridge by about 3 fold. I find that the sugru has an odd smell to it that seems to dissipate as its curing. As of this post its been over 12 hours (full cure is about 24 hours) and there is still a light smell. I will post an update after a few more days to report if the smell is still present. I wanted to add rubber to my fore grip and the plastic grip panels of my hyperframe.

I started with the fore grip. The person in the magazine article that was using this product was making a custom ergo mouse that needed to be skinned with sugru. He said he rolled out the sugru flat with a rolling pin. This didn't work for me. Had I known I was going to have some issues at this stage I might have watched a few more youtube videos. The sugru either stuck to my rolling pin, table or cutting board and it stained my white cutting board. Since you only have about 30 minutes to work with sugru before it starts to soft set, I free formed the sugru to the grip. I used 3 packs on the fore grip. To add texture, I rolled a washing machine lint catcher into the still pliable sugru. I also considered using screen mesh from a window. Here is a picture still in progress of adding sugru;

I wasn't happy with it at first but added a little more and it dried a different color.

I think it looks a little better after it had about 12 hours to dry. I then used about 1 and 1/2 packs on the side of the grip with the window and about 2 packs on the other side of the grip. To make sure the sugru was consistently placed on the grip panels, after it was applied, I rolled the grip panels face down on my table top. It didn't stick as much as with the fore grip. By rolling the grips on the table, I was able to identify low spots and added more as needed. After the sugru was applied evenly, I added texture with the lint catcher again (making sure to leave holes for the grip screws). I was a little happier with the results I got with the grips.

After about 12 hours of curing, the rubber is very solid but with a little bit of give. Almost the feel of the rubberized focus ring on my Nikon camera.

With some left over sugru I added new nose and ear pads to a pair of old sunglasses I had hanging around. I would suggest practicing on something else before using this on an irreplaceable marker. If needed, I think I can get the sugru off the grip panels easy enough but the fore grip might be more trouble than its worth. If possible find a local dealer for the sugru to help on shipping costs. I called their support number 877-990-9888 and a lovely London accented woman was able to locate a dealer in my area. Or try sugru.com

After the sugru has fully cured and I've had some field time with the marker, I'll post another update.

I found when I was using it on the foregrip that it keeps a lot of detail. Half joking I fitted my hand around the foregrip and squeezed. It captured every ridge in my hand and my fingerprints (after I spread it evenly and put in the texture). I'm not sure if there is any shrinkage. I checked the sugru website and according to them "sugru is great for molding". http://sugru.com/questions/can-i-mol...-oil-or-grease - I'm not sure what you are molding but you might want to check their website.

Its been about 48 hours since I used the sugru and the smell is no longer present. The fore grip had more product on it (more drying time) and the smell lingered there a little longer. I'll report back after I've had some field testing.

I used the hyperframe with the sugru grips over the weekend. The weather was nice but the field was VERY muddy. The extra grip that the rubber provided made for a better hold. I managed to get mud on the fore grip and grip panels. The rubber held up to a light scrubbing with a toothbrush to remove the caked on mud without removing or damaging any of the embedded rubber. In all I am happy with it but the next time I try added it to something I'll be a little more creative with pattern. I'll update if I have any issues with it flaking in the future. Let me know if anyone else decides to use this, I'd be interested to hear about your experience.